Moon

Moon is one of those 'interesting' films. It is technically classified as an independent film. However, it has a pretty decent budget and a fantastic, all be it small, cast. Set in the not so distant future, dwindling natural resources have forced humans to work on the moon to harvest solar energy. Sam Bell, played by Sam Rockwell, is the lone employee on a corporate mining facility on the moon. His sole source of direct communication he has with Earth comes from prerecorded messages. The only thing that keeps him company is the facilities artificial intelligence named Gerty (voiced by Kevin Spacey). With 3 weeks left to go before his 3 years of solitude on the moon is set to expire his mind begins to break down. After an accident on the grounds of the facility, Sam sets out to find a crashed rover. He not only finds the crashed rover, but discovers a lone survivor as well. The survivor happens to be Sam Bell.

Going into this film, you can see the retro futuristic feel of 2001: A Space Odyssey. I kind of expected a movie based around an individual's deteriorating sanity in the wake of spending 3 years alone. What I got instead was an entirely different film based around an entirely different ideology. Moon explores what it means to be human and to what depths a corporation would go to earn high profits.

Sam Rockwell's performance is very powerful in this movie. Just about any person watching this will be able to identify with him. He is your classic 'every' man, just looking to get home to his family. The manner in which both versions of Sam Bell deal with what is a very horrific situation is both completely believable and completely different. Added to that, Kevin Spacey's voice of the facilities artificial intelligence is almost chilling. You will spend half the movie wondering if he is a villain or an ally.

This is the directorial debut of Duncan Jones of an original story he wrote. I will not be surprised to find more good things to come from him. Moon is very well shot and the production designs are very reminiscent of great science fiction films of the late 70's. This works perfectly to aid the overall feel of the film. Moon is a film that has slid under many people's radars, but is one that should not be missed.

My Rating 4.5 out of 5